Seventeen-year-old Klee’s father was the center of his life. He introduced Klee to the great museums of New York City and the important artists on their walls, he told him stories made of myths and magic. Until his death.

Now, forced to live in the suburbs with his mom, Klee can’t help but feel he’s lost all the identifying parts of himself—his beloved father, weekly trips to the MoMA, and the thrumming energy of New York City. That is until he meets wild and free Sarah in art class, with her quick smiles and jokes about his “brooding.” Suddenly it seems as if she’s the only thing that makes him happy. But when an act of betrayal sends him reeling, Klee lands in what is bitingly referred to as the “Ape Can,” a psychiatric hospital for teens in Northollow.

While there, he undergoes intensive therapy, and goes back over the pieces of his life to find out what was real, what wasn't, and whether he can stand on his own feet again. Told in alternating timelines, leading up to the event that gets him committed and working towards getting back out, Gae Polisner's In Sight of Stars is a gorgeous novel told in minimalist strokes to maximal effect, about what makes us fall apart and how we can put ourselves back together again.

GAE POLISNER is the award-winning author of The Memory of Things (Nerdy Book Club Best YA 2016), The Summer of Letting Go (Nerdy Book Club Best YA 2014, Teen Ink Editor’s Choice Badge of Approval) and The Pull of Gravity (2012 Bank Street Best, 2012 PSLA Top Forty, Nerdy Book Club Best YA 2011). She also co-hosts Teachers Write!, a virtual writers camp for teachers and educators. She lives in Long Island, New York with her family.

Praise for The Memory of Things:

“Gae Polisner’s beautiful and poetic The Memory of Things shows us the enduring resilience of human connections. Powerful, frightening, sad, and impossible to look away from, The Memory of Things is ultimately filled with love and hope. This is a truly remarkable, unforgettably moving book.”—Andrew Smith, Printz Honor-winning author of Grasshopper Jungle

“An absolute gem... This one is going to be around for a LONG time.”—Chris Crutcher, Margaret A. Edwards Award-winning author of Deadline and Whale Talk

“We know what happened on 9/11. What remains a mystery and a wonder is how life goes on in the face of such darkness. The Memory of Things is a story about where people find their light, and how it shines through all the places we’ve been broken. Heartfelt, hopeful, this is a story fed by humanity and the enduring human spirit.”—Martha Brockenbrough, author of The Game of Love and Death

“Lyrical, devastating, extraordinary, and full of heart, The Memory of Things reminds us that in our darkest times, there is so much light to be found in the human spirit. It is, of course, a love letter to New York, but more importantly, it is a love letter to human beings, one that masterfully weaves hope through pain, loss, solace, and connection.”—C. Desir, author of Other Broken Things and Bleed Like Me

“A poetic and hypnotizing portrait of compassion.”—Kate Scelsa, author of Fans of the Impossible Life